Love Explained
by Penguistic
Summary: Sandstorm begins to explain her feelings for Fireheart in her thoughts, and also realizes that feelings will always change.


_A/N- This is the first of 100 one-shots that I am working on, one per day. I upload them all to my Deviantart account, Red-And-Black, so I thought I might as well do so here. _

The night had just fallen upon Thunderclan's territory, the crickets coming out to chirp as many of the clan cats escaped into their dens for the night. Only a few stayed awake: those charged with guarding the camp, and those who simply wished to enjoy some night-time air. It was rather peaceful, something that was usually not applicable to the four clans at the time. You could definitely say that Fireheart and Sandstorm were willing to take advantage of the nice weather and quiet night too, as they had just slipped out of camp to go hunting together.

The light orange she-cat kept up her pace beside the deputy, eager to impress him and show-off a bit, just like any she-cat would when they finally realized that they felt something special for a tom. Sandstorm may have been a friend of his, but it wasn't often that they were both able to go hunting together. Firestar was constantly swamped with duties he had to perform as Thunderclan deputy, and, well, Sandstorm simply just continued on with her work like she usually did.

During times like these, it was difficult for the Thunderclan warrior to really function like her old self. In many cases, she couldn't help but wonder what Fireheart had thought of her before she had started to warm up to him. Back then, she had not been kind to the newcomer. It was difficult for her to believe that Fireheart would amount to anything back then. He was simply a kittypet. It was all he would ever be, or so she had thought. Why would Bluestar take such care in making sure he became a warrior for the sake of Thunderclan? It had made no sense. Now she saw why though.

Fireheart had a loyalty stronger than anything she had ever came into contact with before. There was something about him that made him a good warrior and an amazing deputy. He was strong, quick-minded, and seemed to be born to lead. Now, she was the one questioning how any cat in the clan could announce that his appointment as deputy was a bad omen. It may have been announced late, but if such a capable cat was being chosen, why was anybody at fault? It was not a bad omen to her, it was the start of a new beginning. She believed the orange cat beside her would do any amazing job, and she just wished that other would be able to see that too.

Others might wonder what had changed her feelings for him. How could she have been so rude to him in the beginning, and then suddenly warm up to him? It seemed as if she had hated him beyond measure, and yet, here she was hoping to impress him. Well, it had all started that one moment when he had saved her life. To do such a thing, it stumped her beyond reason. It was what had proved to her that he would be loyal to Thunderclan, and it also warmed her up to him personally. She no longer thought of him as the kittypet, or even the warrior. In her mind, he was a kind friend and a charismatic deputy.

"So, where would you like to hunt? Do you have any place in mind?"

The sound of Fireheart's voice threw her from her trance, forcing herself to face his presence. The she-cat turned her head to gaze up at him while she walked, her pale green eyes training on him while she tried to think of a nice hunting spot. In all honesty, she had not kept it in mind when she had asked him, and now she was starting to feel severely mousebrained for not thinking of it earlier.

"How about the Great Sycamore?" she asked. "I've heard from a few of the other warriors that it has had a decent amount of prey recently."

"Alright. You want to race there first?" Fireheart had a playful smirk on his face, keeping his calm demeanor as he waited for her to say whether it was okay or not. Sandstorm was a bit flattered, noticing that it would not be often that a regular Thunderclan warrior might catch him acting like he was now. He was not too reserved, but he was not open like this around the others.

"Of course. I'll beat you now and then I'll catch prey before you too."

Sandstorm quickly sped off, running as quickly as she could manage. It was clear, that though her feeling for Fireheart had softened, that she still held her air of competitiveness, and that was something she was never going to loose.


End file.
